WHITEGOLD MILITIA
“Come on you maggots, hit him harder!” A drill sergeant shouted to the two stallions practice fighting with each other.
The red one followed the drill sergeant instruction and struck his sparring partner in the leg with his wooden pole.
“Ow, shit!” The blue stallion exclaim, feeling the stinging pain his buddy just delivered onto his left front leg. “That fucking hurts, you dick!” He angrily said.
“Hey don't get pissy with me, Springer!” The red stallion retort. “Not my fault you're such a pansy that you can't deal with a little pain.”
“That's it, Harp!” The blue stallion yelled and rush at him with his wooden pole.
Springer threw his weapon at Harp, who just duck to avoid it. However, the red stallion didn't expect Springer to tackle him. Both ponies fell to the ground, violently began punching each other.
“Alright, alright break it up you two!” The drill sergeant separated the two stallions from each other by using his magic. “The hell was that? Are you two soldiers or highschoolers? Cause this isn't the school, this is the Militia training camp!”
The drill sergeant then release them from his magic. The unicorn stallion then turn to face the rest of the ponies. “Listen up everypony!” He yelled, earning him the attention of everypony around. “Commander Sassaflash, is coming here to inspect all you new recruits and see for far you gone in your training. So putting it simply, don't you dare make me look bad. If you do, then it is ten laps around The Wall!”
“The Whole Wall, sir” One pony asked.
“Make that twenty laps!” The drill sergeant barked back.
Everypony in the room mentally groan in their heads. It was bad enough that they were all drafted to join the Whitegold Militia and force into intensive training, but a lap around The Wall would take all day.
The Wall was a large structure, located only in the fortress city of Manehattan. Aside from providing protection, The Wall also serve to separate the nobles from the commoners. While the rich live in the Inner City, poor had to live in the slums known as the Undercity.
It is there in the Undecity, is where majority of the Whiltegold Militias comes from. Drafted into service, the poor ponies had no choice but to follow the order and headed towards The Wall.
After calming down, both Harp and Springer join with the rest of their fellow recruit. They listen in as their drill sergeant explained the importance of the Commander visitation.
Suddenly a pegasus pony flew in overhead and landed next the drill sergeant. The mare said something to the stallion, but because her voice was so low, none of the ponies heard it except the drill sergeant.
“She's coming now!” He blurted out loud. The mare nodded her head and the drill sergeant turn to face everyone. “Get ready ponies! Commander Sassaflash is coming and she expects the best out of you!”
6 Hours Later
Both Harp and Springer laid on the ground of tired, exhausted and panting heavily. They weren't the only one doing this. The rest of new recruits did same thing, laying scattered around the ground, giving their sore bodies the time to relax.
When Commander Sassaflash arrived, the drill sergeant showed her how much progress they have made. The mare however, was not impressed and decide to make the new recruits do a new training exercise. So for the next six hours, Commander Sassaflash worked them hard.
She made galloped back in forth through a rigorous obstacle course. Then she made them all lift incredibly heavy barrels and carried them to one side then back. Lastly came combat training. The mare knew that they would all be too tired to properly fight, but she wanted to see who could still still had enough energy left to put up a fight.
During this whole ordeal, Sassaflash didn't share her thoughts with anyone. She mentally record everything she saw in her mind and added some side notes as well. Once she concluded the training, she silently left the area, leaving all the new recruits to relax.
“My goddess that was some hard training.” Harp stated.
“You can say that again, Harp.” Springer commented.
“Seriously, what is that mare's problem? Doesn't she know we're just common folks, we're not use to these intense training.”
“Commander Sassaflash is preparing you guys for the coming battle.” Said a new voice from behind the two.
Both Springer and Harp turn their head and saw a yellow stallion standing next to them.
“Hey, Hopper.” Springer greeted to which the yellow stallion wave at him.
“What do you mean she's preparing us for the coming battle?” Harp questioned. “Why should we fight, isn't that what those mercenaries are for?”
“The one thing you must always remember about mercenaries is that they are soldiers for hire. Meaning they fight for the highest bidder.”
“Yeah and House Whitegold are the wealthiest of all.” Harp pointed out.
“That may be true, but there are somethings worth more then money.” Hopper stated. “Look at the state of our country, sooner or later our economy will crash. And when it does, our bits will be worthless. Soon the mercenaries that fought on our side with either abandoned us or betray us to the other faction. Worse case scenario, they might even try to take over our city. Hell they can since half our military force is made up of their kind.”
Hopper then stare Harp's face, with a look of seriousness. “So that is why we train, so that when the time comes, we'll be ready to face them head on.”
“Jeez Hopper, would you cut the crap, you sound like a nut.” Said the res stallion. “I mean seriously, the economy will collapse? Yeah, this whole divide thing has been going on for fifteen now and the nobles are still rich, living in paradise in their luxurious homes in the Inner City.”
“Hey I'm just stating it out, sooner of later those mercenaries will turn on us. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not in a month, hell maybe not even in a year, but one day they will stab us in the back.”
“Yeah that will probably the day when pigs start flying.” Harp remarked.
Springer decided to change the subject before this goes any further. “But in all serious though, Sassaflash work us too hard. I mean for goddess sake we're not the soldier type.”
“Hey you think she was bad, she was way better then the last Commander.” Hopper said. “Now that guy was a bastard.”
“Really? Did this guy made everypony train harder?”
“Oh no, none of that.” Hopper corrected. “He just sends you off to your death.”
---
Long ago, before Sassaflash was a commander, the young pegasus mare was just a lieutenant. The commander of the Whitegold Militia back then was a noble unicorn stallion named, High Standard.
Commander Standard cared little for the commoners that filled in the ranks of the militia. He saw them beneath him and believe to be expendable. In fact, during his time the Whitegold Militia suffered a huge amount of casualties under his command. This was due to him just using them as cannon fodders in his skirmishes.
A lot more ponies would've died, but thankfully Lt. Sassaflash was there. She made her goal to save the lives of as many ponies she could. The mare knew some military strategies and with this knowledge, she lead her comrade to victory with little loss on their side.
Commander Standard, had no problem letting the mare do what she does. After all her success will be credited to him and will make him look good to his superiors.
This went on for some times. Commander Standard will give out a mission and Sassaflash would come up with a plan to deal with it, while also keeping casualties low. However, conflict soon erupted when Standard was now sending the militias on out right suicidal missions. Even if they do some how succeed, they were going to suffer a lot of losses.
Knowing that this would not end will either way, she abandoned the mission. This did not bold well with Commander Standard, who chastised her for disobeying him. He warns her that if she does this again, he was going to send all the milita ponies, to their death.
Fortunately for her, she didn't need to worry about his threat anymore. A few days later, news of Commander High Standard betrayal got out. Apparently, agents of the House discovered letters from the Cult of Laughter in his office. The letters were about the cult sending instruction to the Commander, instructions about weakening the House's control in the Undercity, this will allow them to send in their agents to rile up the inhabitants to declare a revolution. This would then weaken the House even further, weak enough for them to move in easily control what remains.
The agents then arrested High Standard for treason and was taken away. With him gone, this left a vacant spot that needed to be filled. After reading up on Lt. Sassaflash and hearing about all of her achievements, the higher ups felt that she was more then qualified for this position so they promoted her.
Lt. Sassaflash was now Commander Sassaflash. The youngest pony to ever achieve that rank.
---
“And that was how Sassaflash, became the Commander of the Whitegold Militia.” Hopper concluded his tale.
“Wow, can't believe a cult member infiltrated our ranks.” Springer commented.
“Yeah and reach to a high ranking no less.” Harp added.
“Well good thing he was discovered before he could do any more damage.” The yellow stallion then looked up and notice that they were alone. “Shit, you guys better head back to your barracks before you get into trouble.”
Both Harp and Springer turn their head and saw all the ponies were gone. “Oh crap, come Springer we got to get back or else the drill sergeant will have our asses!”
Harp and Springer quickly stood up and hastily galloped back to their barracks.
Meanwhile, somewhere else in The Wall. Commander Sassaflash was in her office, doing some paper works. She lean forward to her desk, writing things down on each paper before her. This posture was not exactly good for her back, so it no wonder why she felt her back aching.
Deciding to take a break, Sassaflash lean back and rested on her big comfy chair. She turn her chair slightly to the left so that she can look out the window. The sky was bright orange yellow, the sun was setting and soon night will take over.
As the mare stared out the window, her mind begins to wander off. Her mind drifted to the past, back when she was still a Lieutenant.
Everypony knew of the story about Commander High Standard betraying the House to the Cult of Laughter. However, what nopony knows was that she set him up.
Sassaflash, wrote those letters herself. She made sure to change the style of her writing, less somepony recognizes it. Once the letters were done, she knew that she can't simply tell her superiors about this, so she hid it in Standard's office and spread rumours of his involvement with the cult.
Soon the rumours reach into the ears of the Whitegold's agents, who then in turn decide to check if the rumour were true or not. To their shock they found the letters Sassaflash planted, and arrest the commander on the spot.
Sassaflash, watch the commander being dragged away. She smiled to herself, taking pride at what she has done and felt justified for doing so. Commander High Standard may not been a traitor, but that doesn't mean he was a good guy. He was a terrible stallion, sending poor ponies to their death.
Her trip down memory lane has ended, now she was back into her office still continuing to stare out her window. Sassaflash, then went back to the papers and continue off where she last stop. The mare wanted to finish this quickly so that she focus on training her troops.
After the mess Commander High Standard left behind, Sassaflash had a lot of work ahead of herself. She was going to turn these recruits into the best soldiers, the House has ever seen.